Andrews government’s Canberra fury; five new local cases; nursing home in lockdown
Elderly residents have been confined to their rooms and an urgent testing blitz is underway after a nursing home worker from Melbourne’s west emerged as the outbreak’s first mystery case.
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Authorities have been unable to uncover how an aged care worker at a Maidstone nursing home caught the virus, making it the first “mystery case” of the current outbreak.
She is believed to have been infectious when she worked on May 26 and 27, before developing symptoms and getting tested on Friday.
The worker, a healthcare provider, has only had one dose of vaccine.
About one-third of its 110 staff and more than half of residents at the centre have received a jab.
Victoria’s Covid commander Jeroen Weimar said the federal government was responsible for vaccinating residents and staff in this aged care home.
He said there was “no statutory requirement” for aged care workers to be vaccinated before they go to work.
“We have, of course, had a requirement within the hotel quarantine system operated by the state whereby any staff member in that sector has to be vaccinated, and they have a 100% vaccination record,” he said.
A testing blitz of staff and residents is taking place at the facility in Melbourne’s northwest on Sunday, with a steady stream of workers visiting the centre for their swabs.
Staff arriving at the site said they did not know how the worker contracted the virus.
“We are pretty swamped,” one employee said.
A medical waste company arrived at the facility about 1.30pm to restock it with bins.
Staff in masks and PPE greeted workers arriving at the centre and checked their credentials before granting entry.
“(An) aged care positive case is an extreme concern to us – for two reasons,” Mr Weimar said.
“It is our most vulnerable and sensitive setting that we have and that is why we have put such an important response into this since late last night.
“I am concerned that at this point in time we don’t have an original acquisition source.
“At this point in time, this is the first mystery case we have seen in this particular outbreak.”
Families with loved ones have been locked out of the facility since Melbourne was plunged back into lockdown last week.
Arcare chief executive Colin Singh said in a letter that the facility was firmly in isolation, with residents confined to their rooms.
“This means that clients need to self-isolate in their suites and team members are now wearing full personal protective equipment (PPE),” Mr Singh said.
“We have sufficient PPE and all other supplies necessary to continue to provide support and services to our clients and team safely.
“I want to assure you that, whilst we hoped that this would not happen again, we are well prepared, and our infection control practices put us in a good place to manage this outbreak effectively.”
Mr Singh said that the aged care home was working with state and federal authorities on contact tracing.
“At this time, there are no other cases of COVID-19 in any of our other residences and we have actively limited the movement of team members between residences and visitation since the Stage 3 lockdown came into effect,” Mr Singh said.
Arcare has been contacted for comment.
CHADSTONE SHOPPERS ON ALERT
Thousands of shoppers at Chadstone Shopping Centre have also been put on alert after a Covid-infected person “walked around” the centre, ate at a restaurant and shopped in three stores on May 26.
Health authorities have listed Yokozuna restaurant between 11.30am and 12pm as a Tier 1 exposure site.
Anyone at these venues during these periods should get tested immediately and quarantine for 14 days.
The remainder of the shopping centre between 11.30am and 2pm on May 26, as well as Optus between 12pm-12.40pm, Bakers Delight between 12.40pm-12.45pm and Woolworths between 12.50pm and 1.30pm, is listed as a Tier 2 site, meaning anyone who was there should get tested and isolate until they receive a negative result.
Mr Weimar revealed that health authorities held greater concerns over some infected cases.
“There’s a number of really important positive cases in this cohort of 50, some we are more worried about than others,” he said.
“There are cases that are potentially more infectious than others and some with more symptoms in different settings.”
In a positive update, Mr Weimar said there was no evidence of further transmission from the five pubs and clubs earlier identified as venues of most concern.
More than 500 close contacts presented for testing, with 57 per cent of identified people having so far returned a negative test.
In total, Victoria has more than 4000 primary close contacts linked to the City of Whittlesea and Port Melbourne outbreaks, with three-quarters of those already testing negative.
The state recorded another huge testing day, with 45,301 tests being received in the past 24 hours.
One new case was detected in hotel quarantine, bringing Victoria’s total number of cases to 49.
VIC GOVT SLAMS LACK OF FEDERAL SUPPORT
The Andrews government has lashed its federal counterparts for failing to provide any financial assistance during the state’s seven-day snap lockdown.
It comes as five new local cases of Covid-19 were detected in the Victorian community overnight, including one new mystery infection in an aged care worker.
The state government announced a $250.7m support package for up to 90,000 Victorian businesses affected by the restrictions, including $2500 grants for eligible businesses directly affected by the circuit-breaker industry restrictions.
But Mr Merlino said pleas for help had been rejected by the federal government and said the Morrison government’s refusal to stump up financial support “should make every Victorian angry”.
“Victorian workers need support and that is where we needed Canberra to come to the table and I am very sorry to say that they have refused to do that,” he said.
“We asked multiple times for the federal government to support workers during this period and the unrelenting answer has been no.
“Victorian workers deserve more from the federal government and I am beyond disappointed that the answer from the Prime Minister and the Treasurer has been no.”
Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas also unleashed on the Morrison government, accusing the federal government of shirking its responsibilities.
“Why is it that they have taken this view that they see a right to absolve themselves of responsibility? Every step along the way of the journey we have seen far too often from the federal government, the willingness to try and find somebody else to take responsibility for their job, whether it is vaccine rollout or whether it is quarantine,” he said.
“You name it, the commonwealth has found a way to find somebody else to blame because they don’t like taking responsibility. Well, that is fine but when it translates into putting the welfare and wellbeing of this community at risk then we will call it out.”
Mr Pallas said the state government pleaded for assistance with payments for workers who were stood down as a result of the lockdown, and subsequently asked the commonwealth if it would match their assistance package.
“I start off by saying the acting Premier is much more reserved in his language than I will be around the federal government’s position on this. It is totally, totally unsustainable,” he said.
Mr Pallas said the federal government was “nothing short of a disgrace”, urging the Prime Minister to step up for Victorians.
“You will hear a lot from the federal government about the need for us to work in partnership, well, we are not a silent partner. They like making speeches. They are not a tangible partner,” he said.
“We need them to step up to the plate. Workers need them, the community needs them. The economic cost of this event is estimated to be $700m.
“This government is contributing $250m to assist businesses … what we needed was the Commonwealth to make at least a comparable offer of support to working people.
“Remember, only yesterday, we had representatives of the federal government saying they were a party for the workers.
“They are nice words, it would be really good if the self-styled party of the workers actually did some work for working people and provided them with the assistance that they need, indeed, that they require.”
ANOTHER DAY OF VACCINE CHAOS
Victoria’s struggling vaccination program has been blasted as complete “chaos” by people turned away from quiet vaccine hubs on Sunday.
Queues outside the Royal Exhibition Building and Melbourne Convention Centre had dramatically shrunk compared to Saturday, where people waited for hours in long lines to get the jab.
Despite the significant drop in demand, walk-ins eager to be vaccinated were turned away by Covid marshals who informed them they could only receive the AstraZeneca dose.
Mum Katherine Fox said the system was ridiculous and deterred people from trying to do the right thing.
“A country like Australia should be far better organised,” she said.
Ms Fox, who is over 40, said she has spent hours waiting to book her vaccination via the Covid hotline but has never gotten through.
“It takes far too long — you can never get through,” she said. “You don’t expect to see chaos like this in Australia.”
Nick Di Falco was fuming when he was told he couldn’t get the Pfizer jab at the Royal Exhibition Building on Sunday.
“We were told we could only get the AstraZeneca and a big group of us just walked off,” he said.
“It annoys me because I know they have it (Pfizer) in there.
“I have tried to book online but they say it’ll be something like a 1½ hour wait just to book. I don’t have the time to sit on the phone. I’ve tried three times.”
Victorians are again enduring hours-long waits to get vaccinated after being urged to persist with getting the coronavirus vaccine.
Walk-in vaccinations re-started at the Melbourne Showgrounds and Sunshine Hospital this afternoon, after a temporary halt as queues grew.
Wait times on Sunday earlier ballooned out to as long as five hours at Sunshine Hospital after people were reportedly queuing up for their jab at the St Albans jab hub as early as 6.30am — 90 minutes before doors opened.
Its 630am
— Kylie Pirate - (@kyliehobomum) May 29, 2021
People are already lining up for the covid vaccine at sunshine hospital hub! pic.twitter.com/cfBDx0X2pC
Western Health tweeted just before 2pm that the queue at the showgrounds was “slowly starting to build again ... but we have room for more today so, if you’re eligible, head on down”.
The health service said the vaccination hub at Sunshine Hospital was also welcoming walk-ins.
According to the state government’s coronavirus website, wait times have stretched to three hours at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, two hours at the Northern Hospital in Epping and 1½ hours at Cranbourne Turf Club.
Walk-ins were also suspended at Sandown Racecourse in Springvale, while IPC Health in Deer Park and Ringwood East Community Clinic were closed on Sunday.
But at the Royal Exhibition Centre on Carlton, walk-ins were turned away despite only a small queue of people waiting for pre-booked vaccinations.
It comes after a chaotic Saturday that saw long queues after a computer glitch and confusing messages that encouraged walk-ins for people who were then turned away.
More than 17,700 vaccines were administered on Saturday, with almost 460,500 vaccines have been administered in Victoria.
RULES SET TO STAY AS AFL FLEES
Mask rules and indoor crowd limits are likely to be extended beyond Victoria’s shutdown amid fears COVID-19 cases have spread too far to “snap back” to pre-lockdown restrictions.
And a longer lockdown is possible with health officials in a race against time to reach hundreds of people who are yet to return test results from more than 150 exposure sites.
Failure to reach enough of the potentially infectious Victorians by midweek risks triggering a lengthier shutdown to contain the spread of cases.
AFL teams are set to abandon Victoria over the uncertainty and hold next weekend’s matches interstate, including the marquee Dreamtime at the ‘G clash which is all but certain to be played in Perth.
Read full story here.
ANTI-LOCKDOWN PROTESTERS FACE MONTHS OF JAIL
Two anti-lockdown protesters face six months’ jail after allegedly assaulting and injuring police amid wild scenes in Melbourne’s CBD.
In a separate incident, a 62-year-old Wheelers Hill woman also faces mandatory prison after allegedly attempting to bite a police officer in the aftermath.
The maskless woman was handcuffed and arrested outside Flinders Street station and charged with assaulting an emergency worker, resisting police and breaching the chief health officer’s directives.
See pictures and read full story here.
CHAOTIC SCENES ON SATURDAY
People waited for as long as six hours to get the jab at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre on Saturday.
Those arriving without appointments after 9.30am were told to come back the next day when a computer system glitch caused massive queues stretching outside and along a pedestrian bridge over the Yarra River.
About 1.45pm people were allowed to rejoin the line for walk-ins.
The Royal Melbourne Hospital, which operates the centre, just after 3pm issued a tweet saying there was capacity for walk-ins and the centre would remain open until 6pm.
But staff were turning away people at 4.30pm in what has been described as a miscommunication.
Health Minister Martin Foley told the Sunday Herald Sun: “My message to everyone is to be patient.
“If you cannot get vaccinated today, call the hotline at a later point.
“If you can’t get through, book via your local GP network or keep an eye on the walk-in times via the department’s website — you will be able to get vaccinated and we are bringing on additional capacity to help ensure this.”
A fault with the Microsoft Covid-19 Vaccine Management System used to handle bookings was blamed for the morning chaos, which also affected the Royal Exhibition Building hub.
Victoria’s testing commander Jeroen Weimar said the technical faults were remedied by 10.30am, with the sites “vaccinating people throughout that time”.
“I’m frustrated about it. Let’s make no mistake, this is not what we want to see in our operational systems,” Mr Weimar said.
Some people desperate for a jab chose to wait in a queue outside the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, one man telling the Sunday Herald Sun he was finally vaccinated after six hours.
But many turned around and went home, visibly frustrated.
One woman, who said she was eligible for the Pfizer jab, came to the vaccination centre on Friday at noon and was told to come back on Saturday morning.
She arrived at 9am, when the doors were due to open, but was told soon after that walk-ins were not being accepted.
A Covid marshal told the woman she was too late and suggested she should camp overnight.
“I’m not queuing overnight. It’s too cold,” the woman said.
Tony Zarka, who turned up for a shot on reading the Royal Melbourne Hospital tweet, said staff on the ground were unaware of the message and told him the hub closed at 4.30pm.
He was eventually vaccinated.
One man turned away said it was “devastating” as he was due to start working in hotel quarantine next week. “It seems like they are short staffed and very overworked,” he said.
Neelosha Pangasa, 42, who turned up in the afternoon for her shot, said staff went the extra mile after the “complete breakdown” in communication.
The Royal Melbourne Hospital late Saturday apologised for the day’s confusion, saying the centre would take walk-ins until 5.30pm with staff to stay until 6pm to get through the final arrivals.
For the first time, vaccinations administered in state-run centres on Friday surpassed 21,000.
— Additional reporting: Laura Placella and Mitch Ryan
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